Why bother with a synthetic blend ?

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on the road in NE Oklahoma
Not a trick question. I really am curious to know the reasoning or appeal of buying a blend vs conventional or a full synthetic product .

Do any synthetic blend products actually list the ratio of synthetic to conventional oil on the label ?

Is there any way for a consumer to know if they are getting a 50% / 50% blend or a 1% / 99% blend ?


Z
 
Not a trick question. I really am curious to know the reasoning or appeal of buying a blend vs conventional or a full synthetic product .

Do any synthetic blend products actually list the ratio of synthetic to conventional oil on the label ?

Is there any way for a consumer to know if they are getting a 50% / 50% blend or a 1% / 99% blend ?


Z
You are not even getting a traditional "synthetic" with most ILSAC "Fully Synthetic" labeled lubricants.

And you cannot buy a "Conventional" in any ILSAC Lubricant due to the current moderate>high performance standard.

You purchase by: Service category, specified Multi-grade and manufacturers specification or required approvals.
 
I got 3 jugs of Valvoline synblend on sale for a reallllllllllllllllly good price so I'll use it but it's not like I go out of my way to buy it. I'll mix it in with some of the full synthetic during oil changes.
 
they're only worth if if you're looking for a cheap 40 or 50 grade. Other than that if i wanted 5w-30 id get supertech syn instead of the syn blend all mileage.

But if i had something that burned a quart every 1k with a 50 grade im buying supertech 20w-50 instead of mobil 15w-50.
 
Not a trick question. I really am curious to know the reasoning or appeal of buying a blend vs conventional or a full synthetic product .

Do any synthetic blend products actually list the ratio of synthetic to conventional oil on the label ?

Is there any way for a consumer to know if they are getting a 50% / 50% blend or a 1% / 99% blend ?


Z
Exactly - you know a full synthetic is 100%. A blend, I guess whether it was 1/99 or 99/1 its still considered a blend. A full synthetic at a place like Walmart is reasonable price.

I'd go with NAPA synthetic rather than a blend from a major oil company.
 
Marketing Marketing Marketing
The average [uninformed customer] likes the terminology and price. It sells.
Most consumers are uninformed and average , driven by marketing claims. I am sure with proper maintenance most vehicles will be delivered to the junkyard with good running engines with syn n or " non " syn oil, Todays oils aren't like the oils of the 1950,60 or 70s.
 
Most consumers are uninformed and average , driven by marketing claims. I am sure with proper maintenance most vehicles will be delivered to the junkyard with good running engines with syn n or " non " syn oil, Todays oils aren't like the oils of the 1950,60 or 70s.
No-most consumers let the dealers or quickie shops perform their oil change, And will accept whatever they use. Whatever marketing by the oil companies is done is irrelevant.
 
Not a trick question. I really am curious to know the reasoning or appeal of buying a blend vs conventional or a full synthetic product .
FWIW. ELF did a study years ago and found that blends worked best in super high performance race engines

Also those killer turbo-supercharged Detroit Diesels love and live on a nice 30 OR 40 monograde conventional

 
For quick lubes it is an opportunity to make more money. They can sell the synblend option at a significantly higher cost than their "conventional oil change" with only a small increase in product cost.
 
There is no industry standard for what defines a syn blend. I use a syn blend because my mechanic charges $30 for an oil change on my 4runner with syn blend API SP. Full syn runs $55 so it's not worth it to me. He recently started using smittys super s multi flo. I contacted the manufacturer (they also make cam2 syn blend which is the same formula I suspect) and they also confirmed there is no specific amount of syn that needs to be added. For them, they add 8-20% syn base stock (group III) to meet SP spec depending on the weight.

On the other hand, he used to use chevron supreme but I assume the price has gone up a lot since he decided to change. He tries to keep most of his syn blend changes to 25-35 dollars. When I contacted chevron they noted that they use over 40% syn base stock within their formulation.

My thinking is if it meets the manufacturer specs, why bother with more? If your doctor prescribes you 500mg of an antibiotic, do you take 2000mg just for "safe measure?"

Hope my car doesnt blow up...
 
For quick lubes it is an opportunity to make more money. They can sell the synblend option at a significantly higher cost than their "conventional oil change" with only a small increase in product cost.
I wonder what quicklubes do now that all "conventional" oil is actually blends..
 
Today group 3 synthetics are cheap enough not to waste time with blends
or even conventionals. Yes, it's approvals what counts, but most approvals
you really want are commonly found on synthetics.
 
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